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End of Summer Travel: One Last Music Festival

August 29, 2008 at 1:30 PM | 1 Comment

There's no better way to end the summer than with an outdoor music festival right on the beach. Celebrate your Labor Day weekend in Virginia Beach at the Verizon Wireless Music Festival.

Things kickoff this evening as the festival celebrates its 15th year of winding down the summer season. Tonight's headline on the 5th Street Main Stage is Morris Day and The Time. A $30 weekend ticket will get you into the show along with the Billy Idol concert on Saturday and the B52's concert on Sunday. If money is a little tight, there are three other stages with free concerts each night. Los Lobos, War and Warrant are just some of the artists that are performing for free.

The shows end with a fireworks display on both Friday and Sunday evenings. Even if you aren't a big fan of the music, there's always plenty to do and eat as you wander through the street vendors that set up shop for the weekend festivities. If you still have your doubts about the weekend in Virginia Beach, there's a Blues-fest in only a couple more weeks if that's more you style.

Related Stories:
· Verizon Wireless American Music Festival [Official Site]
· Labor Day Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo of a 2007 event: Beach Street USA]

Labor Day Travel: West Indian American Day Carnival

August 27, 2008 at 10:03 AM | 0 Comments

If you're visiting New York this Labor Day Weekend--or if, as we're told many of you are, staycationing in NYC--the weekend's biggest party is in a place you might not guess first: Crown Heights, Brooklyn.

Nearly three million people are expected to turn out for the West Indian American Day Carnival, a four-day celebration of some of the world's most celebratory cultures. If you're at all interested in spicy food, colorful costumes and calypso (and yes, the four billion other genres of Caribbean music), this is not a festival to miss.

The music-and-food extravaganza takes places behind the Brooklyn Museum, August 28-31, culminating in the main event, the showy carnival parade along Eastern Parkway.

Related Stories:
· West Indian American Day Carnival Association [Official Site]
· Labor Day Non-Travel: Americans Bailing on Late-Summer Trips [Jaunted]
· Labor Day Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: West Indian American Day Carnival Association]

Labor Day Travel: Marathons and More in Santa Barbara

August 26, 2008 at 11:00 AM | 0 Comments

If your Labor Day plans usually involve a buffet of beer, burgers and beans, you may not be up for the Pier to Peak Half Marathon which takes place on August 31 and certainly looks like quite a challenge on paper.

Participants will start out on Santa Barbara's Stearns Wharf and will make their way up through the city. Try not to stop for photos as you pass by the Santa Barbara Mission--though you might stop in and pray for a little extra energy. The race ends when you reach La Cumbre Peak and start to enjoy views of the city and the Channel Islands while you try to catch your breath.

If this isn't your idea of a relaxing holiday weekend, then take the opportunity to visit over 40 studios during the Santa Barbara Studio Artists annual tour. A $20 ticket will get you into all the studios and a Friday evening reception, with proceeds supporting the town's arts fund. Artists on hand will be more than willing to explain their work and, we're sure, send you home with an expensive souvenir.

Related Stories:
· Pier to Peak Half Marathon [Official Site]
· Santa Barbara Studio Artists [Official Site]
· Labor Day Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Matt (mistergoleta)]

Labor Day Non-Travel: Americans Bailing on Late-Summer Trips

August 23, 2008 at 1:41 PM | 0 Comments

Labor Day is a major travel holiday in the U.S., with millions of people hitting the road for one last taste of summer before the clouds roll in. But, as a recent Reuters item points out, plenty of Yanks will be sitting this one out, staying close to home rather than shelling out for gas, airfare, and myriad other travel expenses. The travel and auto group AAA estimates that the number of people traveling more than 50 miles from their homes this year will drop by nearly one percent, following similar declines around Memorial Day and Independence Day.

In an almost too-perfect sound bite, one non-traveler sums up the situation thusly:

"I just can't afford it," said 26-year-old Ashley Tyrrell, who plans to skip her annual end-of-summer trek from her home in Overland Park, Kansas, to a family cabin in Wisconsin. "I work full time. But food, gas, everything has just gone through the roof," said Tyrrell. "It's horrible. Congress is on vacation and they're probably soaking up the rays somewhere. We're soaking up high gas prices."

Darn Congress! The kicker of the story, though, is that New Yorkers are "bucking the trend" and traveling more than the rest of the country. Going along with our black-clad herd, we will indeed be leaving Gotham for a couple of days in Washington D.C. Here's hoping the travel industry slowdown makes things just a wee bit cheaper for those of us who still have to go.

[Photo: ew.com]

Related Stories:
· Americans Skip Labor Day Trips as Costs Rise [Reuters]
· Labor Day Travel Coverage [Jaunted]

Labor Day Travel: Banjo Bonanza in Missouri

August 22, 2008 at 1:30 PM | 0 Comments

If your Labor Day to Missouri don't inclue sumo wrestling, then you're probably headed to the 40th Annual Bluegrass Pickin' Time. (Hard to believe that it's already been 40 years!) About 130 miles outside of St. Louis, the small town of Dixon is definitely ready for this year's fun.

Things kick off on Wednesday evening before the holiday weekend with a fish fry, and you're even encouraged to bring a dish to share. Starting Thursday night, the festival will start kickin' with the Bluegrass Pickin' Time Band. After that, things start around lunchtime every day and don't stop until about 10 pm.

In addition to all the music, there will be craft vendors scattered about the park and even a quilt show. [Ed.: Now *that's* Midwestern.] Instrument workshops will also be held so you can get some tips and tricks from the pros to improve your own bluegrass skills. Tickets for the full four days will run you just $35.

Related Stories:
· Bluegrass Pickin' Time [Official Site]
· Labor Day Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo of the 2007 Event: Bluegrass Pickin' Time]

Labor Day Travel: Missouri Japanese Festival

August 22, 2008 at 12:00 PM | 0 Comments

When you think about hotbeds of Japanese-American culture, St. Louis probably doesn't spring to mind. But it should, because the Gateway City is home to one of the largest Japanese gardens in America, the 14-acre expanse at the Missouri Botanical Garden.

And every Labor Day weekend for the last 32 years, the garden has hosted one of the premier Japanese festivals in the US.

The three-day Missouri Botanical Garden Japanese Festival, August 30-September 1, features a wide array of Japanese cultural activities, including martial arts demos, Zen enlightenment workshops and everybody's favorite, sumo wrestling. Ten bucks gets you admission to everything.

Related Stories:
· Missouri Botanical Garden Japanese Festival [Official Site]
· Labor Day Travel Coverage [Jaunted]
· Culture Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Ryan Rumberger, Missouri Botanical Garden]

Labor Day Travel: Whitefish, Montana

August 20, 2008 at 10:00 AM | 0 Comments

Most of Montana's small towns are overlooked by travelers rushing to Yellowstone and the state's other Great Outdoors attractions. Lying right at the edge of the Flathead Valley, with Glacier National Park in the background, Whitefish is one small town that is worth stopping by.

If you're heading elsewhere in Montanta for Labor Day, the weather should be just about perfect this time of year to check out this quaint little valley town for a day. And why not? You've got that extra day. Here's what the Whitefish tourist board has to say about the place:

Ask about any Canadian in Southern Alberta and you'll get some kind of story about their adventure in Whitefish.

OK, not sure exactly what that means, but apparently Whitefish has become Montana's Tijuana. Count us in!

more ›

Labor Day Travel: The Booze Free Beach

August 19, 2008 at 9:45 AM | 0 Comments

You know the drill when it comes to packing for the beach: chairs, towels, sunscreen, trashy magazines and some adult beverages. Well, not so fast. Come this Labor Day weekend, Silver Strand Beach, the last public beach to allow alcohol in San Diego County, is cutting us off.

Apparently, drinking has been causing some unwanted behaviors, including a stabbing over Fourth of July weekend.

But there is a silver lining. Although alcohol is banned on the beach, the campsites at the state park will have the taps flowing, as there are no current plans to ban alcohol for the campers. And if you're really sneaky, you can always go the plastic cup route!

Related Stories:
· Silver Strand to Be Booze-Free [KGTV]
· Labor Day Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: t_crescibene]

Labor Day Travel: Car Racing at the Park

August 18, 2008 at 9:45 AM | 0 Comments

With only two weeks left until Labor Day, you'd better get those last-hurrah-of-summer travel plans finalized. One idea is the 26th Rolex Vintage Festival held in the northwest corner of Connecticut at Lime Rock Park. Set in picturesque rolling green hills, the 1.53-mile track curves and bends through the landscape while spectators find their perfect spot on the grass--there are no grandstands or formal seating here.

Each day of the festival brings different types of vintage racing to the track. From pre-war cars to stars from the seventies, there is something for everyone to be interested in. Due to local noise ordinances, and a church across the street, there are no races on Sunday. But there will be a vintage car show where you can walk around the track and check out some of your favorites up close.

Best of all, you can sneak in one last camping trip to end your summer season. With a weekend pass, you're welcome to set up camp on Thursday evening after 6 pm and stay until Monday evening. Enjoy the races, car shows, and a swap meet all from the comfort of your air mattress. A weekend pass will cost you just $85.

Related Stories:
· Lime Rock Park [Official Site]
· Car Racing coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: SoxyLady]

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